A simple errand
by Mr moobe
Summary: Set in the 3675 BBY (The old Republic era), Two Jedi Knights are sent on a mission that will test every ounce of their skill, courage, and loyalties. Although they may not be the best that the Jedi order has to offer, their paths may just change the course of the Galactic War. (Just for fun, there may be errors so feel free to LMK so I can fix them.) All OC's, T for future lang.)
1. Chapter One

Dim light shone through the thick canopy above Shen as he slowly crept along the forest floor. The quietness of the old wood was serene and peaceful, but it made being unheard more trouble than the young Jedi cared for. Making his way in between huge knotted tree roots protruding from the ground, and careful not to rustle the under-growth, he approached a slight opening where the tree line gave way to a field ahead. The patch of wild saw-grass swayed in the slight wind that blew across the pasture. Shen narrowed his eyes, searching carefully for his target. As he scanned the top of the meter-high grass, his gaze finally fixed on a point in the distance about two hundred feet away from his vantage point. He could make out something slowly bobbing above the edge of the grass, something so subtle that anyone not trained in the Jedi arts may not have even realized it was there. Getting tired of wasting time scouting, Shen silently rolled over the fallen trunk he had been crouched behind and slid into the tall grass. Remaining low to the ground, he slid through rough yellow stalks, keeping his movement slow and in synch with the wind. If the plants around him swayed oddly, he feared he would be prematurely caught. And being a mission of stealth, he did not want to repeat it once again.

Finally he had closed enough ground to where he could make out the full form of his target. From what he could figure, it seemed like a T7 Imperial sentinel. A heavily-armored standard issue watch dog that the Empire strew on the perimeter of forward encampments to warn of enemy attacks. It's conical outer shell was perfect at deflecting blaster fire and its swiveling sensor array at the top meant to detect even the slightest movement sound. Normally they would be equipped with high-grade thermal detection as well. Luckily for Shen, today's mission had been on moderate difficulty. Knowing now that all he had to do was wait until the sensor turned in the opposite direction of where he lay and quickly lash out at the drone's exposed underbelly, he breathed a sigh of relief.

But the second it left his lips the drone suddenly whirred to life, spinning its forward facing defense turrets to Shen's hiding spot. The machine unleashed a quick round of blaster fire as the Jedi leapt to his right. The ground where was a split second before was ripped apart. Sensing that the droid had missed its mark, it quickly spun to where Shen now stood. Before another volley of shots fired, Shen drew his lightsaber from his waistband and charged. The sapphire blue blade came to life with a sharp screech, illuminating the grass around him. With a spin of his weapon he expertly deflected every shot in wild directions and slid foot-first underneath the droid. As he came underneath, Shen violently stabbed up into weak area of unarmored metal. Using the momentum of the slide, he rolled to his left as the steel-beast was rendered lifeless and slammed to the ground.

Then, as soon as he laid back to catch his breath, the drone disappeared. Followed by the grass, the trees, the blue sky overhead. All gave way to the steel room he was actually sat in as the training mission booted down, the realistic holo-projections vanished and a loud buzz indicating a failure rang out. After the noised settled, all Shen heard was the quiet laughter of his long time friend Reynan Moxla from the viewing deck. Shen closed his eyes and sighed. The laugh was something that he, and just about everyone else who studied in the temple, could pick out immediately. Shen just kept his head laid back and muttered out a string of curses. through the ever-growing laughter Reynan managed to squeak out "Come on up here buddy, I've got news!"

"What kind of news?" Shen replied through gritted teeth, knowing this was going to be another lame joke.

"No seriously, run up here. This is important!"

"Important enough to make me redo this entire exercise?" Shen yelled back, annoyed.

"Oh come on, you were on easy anyways," Moderate

"and yes, even important enough to make you replay your game." Reynan called back with a final chuckle, wiping away the tears from his eyes as the hilarity of his genius prank faded away. Even though all he had done was raise the difficulty of the exercise to hard.

Fine, better be good Shen thought to himself as he brought himself to his feet. The teenager walked briskly to the training room's exit door and put his hand to the scanner. The panel glowed green as the locking system recognized his identity with both a picture of his face and his name, Shen Nalyd flashed onto the screen. Striding forward as the automated doors slid open, Shen turned to his right and continued up the stairs, two at a time. Reaching level three where the viewing deck was located, he again operated the security system to grant him access to where his friend had been watching. As he entered, Reynan turned quickly to the door and an enormous grin crossed his face. The familiar black tattoos that stretched across the Kiffar's face made the smile look almost sinister in a way. But Shen new he was completely harmless. Well, not completely.

"yeah, yeah, you're hilario-"

"No! That was funny," Reynan interrupted, "but thats not why I'm happy."

"Well come on then, spit it out. Whats going on?" His annoyance suddenly turning into curiosity.

"We've been summoned." he said vaguely.

"By?"

"Master Leigh!"

Shen stood with a confused look adorning his face. The pair had been brought in to see the High Council member on numerous occasions. The most recent being due to the duo commandeering a set of military police issue speeders to race around the air lanes of Coruscant on. But they hadn't got into any trouble lately, At least none that had gotten them caught, so why would they be summoned? But the unusual grin that Reynanstill wore on his face gave Shen another idea.

"I think we're being put on an assignment!" he finally exclaimed.

Shen's face turned to shock. Neither one of the Jedi had been sent off coruscant to help the war effort since being promoted to Jedi Knights the year before. In fact they were the last remaining Knights of their graduating class to still have not been put on assignment. To be frank, Shen didn't think it would ever happen. The higher ups in the Jedi order, in a way, looked down on both Shen and Reynan. Just because we like to have fun, Shen thought. But fun wasn't 'the way of the Jedi'. They were expected to mind their p's and q's to the tee. Follow orders with no question. Something both of them had a slight difficulty in doing.

"How do you know?"

"Well I don't know for sure, but look at this message I was sent an hour ago." Reynan replied, tossing Shen a holo-recorder. A memo addressing both Shen and his friend read across the flat screen:

FOR IMMEDIATE DELIVERLY TO:

REYNAN MOXLA

SHEN NALYD

REPORT TO MY PRIVATE CHAMBER AT 0900 THIS MORNING FOR BRIEFING. ARRIVE PUNCTUALLY.

\- JEDI MASTER VALLINA LEIGH

JEDI HIGH COUNCIL

Shen read the message aloud. The words of a true Jedi, short and to the point. "Well that was uninteresting."

"Uninteresting?" Reynan shouted out, "Brother, when was the last time you read something like that? And meant for us no less!"

Shen had to admit it, usually these types of things included a long list of condescending remarks about how disappointed the Jedi order was in what ever actions they had undertaken to piss off the higher-ups. But this was different. The only feeling he got from the words on the screen was that of official business. Maybe Reynan was right. Hopefully, Reynan was right. Shen was tired of Coruscant. He was tired of the boring day to day draw of training, meditating, preforming daily duties around the temple. He was ready to see some action.

"Well, Oh-nine hundred? Thats in fifteen minutes. we should get going."

"Yes we should my friend. I have a feeling that big things are coming our way." Reynan said gleefully as he slapped Shen's shoulder.

* * *

Jedi master Vallina Leigh sat behind her desk in her secluded private quarters, eyes transfixed on the screen in front of her. Although the Togruta woman had an intense control over her emotions, as was the Jedi way, a feeling that wavered between anxiety and dread floated over her like a storm cloud. She lets her close briefly to collect herself through a quick mediation. The Jedi mantra that had been one of the backbones of her life came across her lips silently; There is not emotion, only peace. Her gaze returned to the monitor, where she had the personnel records of two young Jedi knights pulled from the Temple data base. The first, Reynan Moxla, was a young Kiffar male. His long brown hair and soft face made for a handsome man, but Vallina always found the black angular tattoos that adorned every member of the Moxla clan a tad intense. Almost dark, for a Jedi. If it had been the first time seeing Reynan, she might have thought that he looked like sweet and pleasant person. Vallina did in fact know him though. Over the years he had given her unending grief. Not that his practical jokes were meant with ill intent, they were just unbefitting of a Jedi. In fact the tom-foolish behavior most likely would have been enough for expulsion from the academy if not for Reynan's surprisingly intriguing connection to the force. Especially the abilities of his clan. Below his demeanor of childish antics, he had scored very well in every force-sensitive test that the academy had given him.

To the right, the profile of Shen Nalyd. Vallina's distaste rose to the surface as he brought her index fingers to her temples.

"Oh, Shen."

She still couldn't believe he had actually graduated from the academy. The decision was not hers. The entirety of the high council decided whether or not a padawan had surpassed the level of experience to graduate and become a knight of the Jedi order. Shen's skill in combat was almost unmatched among his peers. He had a knack for fighting, and according to his instructors he thoroughly enjoyed it. Villina greatly hoped that the enjoyment would be that of fun, and not something that may tempt him down the path of darkness.

Unfortunately the thing that Villina didn't like about Shen was his unwillingness to further his connection with the force. In her opinion that was the most important duty of their order. From what she knew of Shen, he had met all base level prerequisites in his force sensitive exams as a youngling at the temple, and even on into is padawan training under the late Master Voc'o Hote. Poor Voc'o She thought.

After the Jedi master's unfortunate death on Ziost, Shen had apparently focused solely on honing the art of the blade. One of her colleagues had mentioned that he felt personally responsible for his master's demise. But that was the way of the Jedi, they lived and died to serve the republic. Especially in this time of war. Villina did feel empathy for the young man, but that did not cure her resignation for him. To be quite honest she had always suspected that Shen had, in a way, cheated his way through to knighthood. Not in any means in tests at the academy or his aptitudes. Rather through indirect bribery.

It was well known that Shen, unlike almost every other member of the Jedi order was still close with his biological family. A biological family, who happened to be very influential in the Republic Senate. Large donors to the Jedi Temple as well. And even within the holy sanctity of the Jedi high council, influence and funding stretched a long way. Especially in this time of war.

Villina took her hands from her head and closed the files. Whatever previous withholdings that she had over these two did not matter. The Jedi order was spread thin over the galaxy. Very thin. There were too many warfronts that needed attending. She had no other available asset to see to the matter at hand. And this matter needed tending to immediately. She looked at the time-readout on her desk. 0858.

They had better not be late.

* * *

"Come on man! We've got two minutes!" Reynan yelled over his shoulder as he raced down the pristine hallways of the temple. The beautiful architecture stunned him every time he saw it, which had been every day for the past thirteen years. He shook the thought away, now was not the time appreciate pretty things. He set his gaze back to the end of the hall.

"Brother, I am sprinting." Shen called back.

It took every bit of willpower to not leave his friend in the dust. Shen wasn't the slowest man Reynan had ever seen, but it wouldn't hurt the guy to lay of the junk food when he went out in the city. He laughed to himself. He was basically jogging. They rounded the corner heading right and could finally see Master Leigh's chamber door.

"One minute!"

They bolted. Running harder than they had maybe their entire lives. This was something to run for.

Finally they reached the end of the long corridor, Reynan stopped so quick that he swore that he was almost skidding while Shen caught up to him promptly after, gasping for breath. He turned to look at his pal, gave him a smile, then pushed the wooden door in front of them open. As the two stepped in, Reynan had to relish at the grandeur of the apartment. The entire room filled with exotic furnishings. Obviously the high council members enjoyed amenities that Jedi knights did not. To the left side of the room sat a living area with long couches, obviously made of expensive Corellian leather, a large fireplace and countless artifacts that lined the shelves. Probably souvenirs from Master Leigh's travels around the galaxy. The right side looked to be her sleeping quarters. An incredibly large bed with the whitest sheets he had ever seen. Amenities indeed. And right in center of the room sat the Jedi master herself. Master Leigh peered up from behind her monitors and gave him an interesting look. Something that looked like she was dreading this conversation, or maybe anxious about it.

"Gentlemen," Master Leigh called across the room to where they were still standing, "have a seat."

Reynan briskly walked over to the set of chairs on his side of the desk and sat down with Shen following closely behind. As he made himself comfortable, he couldn't help but think to himself how flawless the Jedi master was. She was a Togruta, which Reynan already found exotically beautiful, but her odd skin tone was especially interesting. Her face and body were a rusty red hue, while her lekku was teal complimented by white stripes that matched the patterns around her eyes and mouth. Fascinating.

"Master Leigh, a pleasure as always."

"Yes, as always." she replied with a nod.

"And a pleasure for me as well." Shen added on with a smirk.

The Jedi master glance at Shen through slitted eyes, "Yes, well on to business. Thank you both for being on time. I expected to be waiting."

Reynan thought he could sense a bit of humor in the remark, but just passed it off as sarcasm.

"I have summoned you here today to discuss a situation that has come to my attention. Something that must be taken care of immediately." She began as she pulled out a holo-recorder and powered it on. Beams of light shot out of the top of the small black cube forming an image of a female Rodian wearing a long white robe. The words underneath the image reading 'Doctor Vaheem Aldu'.

"Do either of you know who this is?" Master Leigh asked.

"Not a clue." Shen answered curtly, while Reynan just shook his head.

"Good, because you shouldn't. We've tried to keep her identity concealed for a very long while, and for good reason. The doctor has been in our safekeeping for the better part of the decade due to her, exclusive, knowledge and research."

"What kind of research are we talking about, if you don't mind me asking?" Reynan questioned.

Master Leigh gave him a stern look.

"Actually that particular bit of information is highly classified. All you need to know, is that it is highly classified." She finished with an emphasis on 'highly', "The doctor is currently being held aboard a republic cruiser in orbit around Taris."

"Taris?" Shen interjected, "Thats in the outer rim, if she's being held in safekeeping, why is she out there?"

"Actually, a good question. One I can not reply to, as that is highly classified. But, that is exactly why you both are here. You are to travel to Taris and escort her back to Coruscant. I do not expect that you will have trouble in doing this."

Reynan listened intently, nothing out of the ordinary about it. Sounded like a quick jump out and jump back. Although it wasn't as exciting a mission as he was hoping for, something was better than nothing in his book.

"We can handle it, Master."

"I would hope you could. I'll have a shuttle prepared for your journey."

Shen leaned forward sticking his hand out, "Actually ma'm, we could use my personal ship, the Seraph,"

Master Leigh tilted her head slightly, disapprovingly.

"Don't worry, its republic-issue. Top of the line. Promise."

"Very well. You leave tomorrow morning. You are dismissed."

They both stood, gave the council member a respectful bow, and left for the door. Just as they reached it, Master Leigh spoke up one last time.

"Gentlemen, this assignment will define your futures here at the temple. Do not let me down."

And at that, they left, closing the door behind them.


	2. Chapter Two

Shen's mind was racing as he stepped through the door of his personal living quarters. Master Leigh had made the assignment out to be an easy grab-and-go errand, but nevertheless, it was an assignment. Something more than training exercises, assisting the archivists, and standing guard over the temple's entrance. Finally, he and Reynan could show the order that they deserved their titles of Jedi knights. It was a long time coming. Shen knew that he was meant for great things, even if some of the temple's masters, including Master Leigh didn't think so. All of their doubt was just a driving force for him now, and he sensed that Reynan probably felt the same way.

He attempted to clear his mind; after their meeting, the two had spent the entire rest of the day sitting outside in the temple gardens discussing their mission. Of course, Leigh hadn't actually given them any real details beyond their destination and basic orders. So most of the talking had been based around why this 'doctor Aldu' was so important. It was made clear that they weren't in the need-to-know, which only grew their curiosity more. Reynan had suggested that she was maybe some sort of weapons expert, tasked with designing state of the art warships. Shen thought that perhaps she was a biologist who was creating cures for the viruses and diseases spread by the Sith with the intent of mass genocide at the microbial level. All of this, of course, was just friendly speculation. As Leigh had said, it was not their business to know what the doctor did. Highly classified meant that they would likely never know.

It was now nearing nightfall and Shen needed to get some rest. All of the excitement of the day had made it virtually impossible for him to be tired, but he wanted to be at full energy and focus in the morning. So he shed the cloak he had been wearing during the earlier exercise mission, the traditional Jedi robes, and hung them on a rack next to the door. He hated the thing, it was drab, and ugly, and for the most part wasn't even comfortable.

Another pinnacle of the Jedi religion, spirituality over worldly possessions.

Shen didn't quite follow that one to a tee. He glanced around his room, not quite as extravagant as Master Leigh's had been, but he was content. The walls were lined with Tapestries and silk banners that were adorned with his biological family's sigils and crests. Different variations of a golden bird of prey across a deep-purple field. The symbols were a sign of nobility on his home world of Corellia. Every day they reminded him where he came from, what he might have been in a different life. But ever since he had fallen under the apprenticeship of Master Voc'o all those years ago, he knew that his path lay with the Jedi. At times it wasn't as glorious as he had hoped it would be, however his heart had always told him that following the Order was a much more noble life than simply being the son of a senator. That wasn't to say that he didn't still enjoy the occasional gift from his far away family. In fact, pretty much everything in his room had come from Corellia; His bed, cabinets, dressers, and the few heirlooms that littered his shelves. Even his wardrobe, save for the dreaded robes he had just discarded, had been hand made by his father's personal tailor. He pulled a pair of clean briefs from his bedside drawer and slipped them on. Shen's mind now wavered over the thoughts of his father. He hadn't seen him years. Their only communication through short written messages or holo-vids on special occasions and even those were becoming few and far between. The war had taken precious time from both of them. Maybe after he returned from his mission he would be able to visit his father. Probably not. He was lucky enough that the Order even allowed any communication at all. Sometimes he forgot how fortunate he was. Shen walked over to the only window in the room, next to his bed, and opened the blinds. He sat on the window sill and stared over Coruscant's city-scape as the sun was finally lowering beyond the horizon. He had grown to both love and hate the sight. It was quite breathtaking, with all of the towering buildings silhouetting the red hue of the dying light and constant stream of speeders and transport ships along the sky-lanes. It had a chaotic peacefulness to it. But he would still be glad to be rid of it.

He closed the blinds back and went to lay down. Tomorrow was the start of something great. He would make his father proud. He would make the Jedi Order proud.

* * *

The light of the dawn breaking woke Reynan. He was still sitting cross legged in the Temple gardens where he and Shen had spent most of the day yesterday. The garden was by far his favorite place at the temple. The court yard was filled with all kinds of exotic flowers that painted the walkways in a beautiful mosaic. The trees and bushes that towered in the air laid a peaceful shade over the whole place and provided Reynan with the perfect hide-away from the hustle and bustle of Coruscant's city-scape. After his friend had left him to turn in for the night, Reynan had decided to remain and meditate. He preferred that to sleeping in a bed, for some reason he always felt much more rested. He raised his arms above his head for a long stretch and breathed in the cool morning air. Master Leigh had told them that they were to leave for Taris this morning, so he and Shen had agreed to meet at loading bay D just after first light. He was excited to be going, but he could've stood to stay in the gardens a little longer.

There'll be plenty of time to relax when we've come back, it won't be long. He thought.

He leaned over and pushed himself up onto his feet and made for the Temple entrance.

It took him no time at all to reach Dock D, and as he opened the blast door he saw the Seraph sitting with its engines idling. The familiar hammer-head body of the Defender-class Light Corvette was like those used by many of the Order's Jedi, but instead of the classic red and white color scheme of the republic fleet, the Seraph was a deep blue with yellow accents. At the base of the ship's massive rear thrusters, Shen was already milling around shouting orders at an old astro-mech droid.

"Deeks! You rolling trashcan, I said to run a diagnostic on the energy transfer systems, not sit here and take up space!" Shen's voice echoed throughout the loading bay.

Reynan hopped over the safety railing and jumped down the dock's floor.

"Hey come on man, he's trying his best." Reynan called over with a grin. Shen glanced over as he strode toward the ship.

"When are you going to replace this thing Reynan? I don't think understands what I'm saying to him half the time. And think he just caught on fire a few minutes ago."

He looked over at D33-K5, or 'Deeks' as they nicknamed him, with a loving smile. He had been Reynan's personal droid for years, ever since he was just becoming a padawan.

"He's part of the family Shen, you know you'd never let me get rid of him."

"Yeah well, he leaves rust marks all over my ship, at least fix him up a little."

"The rust adds to his charm."

"Nostalgia only goes so far, buddy."

Whatever, Reynan knew Shen loved the old mech as much as he did. Deeks wasn't good for much work these days, but he was still a friend.

"You seen Leigh anywhere?" Shen asked.

Reynan shook his head, "She probably had enough of us yesterday," He glanced up at the Seraph, "Speaking of her though, I was wondering, why do you think she let us take your ship so easily? I've never known her to so agreeable."

Shen shrugged his shoulders, "No clue. Maybe because she knows that the Seraph is faster than any rinky-dink shuttle she could've gotten us. Or maybe she just thought we were going to crash it and didn't want to flip the bill. Doesn't matter either way though, let's just cut out before she changes her mind."

Reynan agreed, the faster they left Coruscant the better, in his opinion.

"Alright, you got everything you want to bring?" Shen asked as he began walking towards the boarding ramp.

"Robes, light-saber, and these bad boys," Reynan replied holding out his fists, "and most importantly my sharp wit and intuition." he finished with a smirk. He could see Shen rolling his eyes. It was a joke, but honestly Reynan didn't need anything else than what he had on him. The force was to him, what all of Shen's shiny toys were to Shen. He loved Shen as a brother, but at times he questioned why material possessions meant so much to him. He couldn't knock him for it though, we all have our flaws.

As they made their way on to the ship, Shen shouting off to Deeks again, "Hey moron, go light up the engines, we're headed out!" Reynan looked around at the interior of the Seraph. He had been on many corvettes over the years, but those had been military issue. They were for quick transport and light engagement. Nothing else. Especially not comfort. The Seraph on the other hand was fitted with every amenity under the sun. Lavish sleeping quarters, lounge, and dining area. Even the corridor that the two walked down was trimmed with expensive looking copper and purple designs. Reynan admired the intricate craftsmanship of the various engravings which depicted the culture of Corellian nobility. He had been on the Seraph once before, years ago. But Shen had obviously had a few additions put in. He wondered the cost of such a ship, but then shuttered at the thought. More than he, or his culture, would ever know. Nearing the end of the walkway, the Seraph shook slightly as the thrusters came to life with a low hum. Shen punched a button on the wall and the cock-pit doors opened. At least this room was more or less the same as the military corvettes. Two pilot seats sat at the front of a large array of sensor modules and flight equipment, with bench seats lining the walls. Except these seats were every bit as lavish as Master Leigh's furniture had been. Shen took the left chair, and Reynan the left. As he sat, he felt the seat morphing slightly to fit his body. A nice touch.

Shen touched the center console to open up a com line, "Jedi Knight Shen Nalyd to flight control, requesting launch clearance from loading Dock D for Republic corvette Seraph."

A response chimed from the on-board speakers after a few seconds, "Seraph you are cleare-" but was cut off by Shen roughly pushing the thruster's throttle forward, and with a loud roar echoing off the walls of the loading bay. "Thanks" Shen said as he flipped the com off. Reynan was pushed back into his chair by the force of the rapid acceleration away from the dock. "Your piloting hasn't improved I see." He said. "What do you mean? Master Hote always said I was one of the best in the galaxy."

"Yeah, well Hote was an even crazier than you."

They both laughed, remembering Shen's lost Master. He was a good friend to both of them, and had taught Reynan much about the complexities of the force. He might have missed him as much a Shen, but he knew that wasn't possible. Shen wore a smile, but Reynan could see sadness through it.

As the Seraph began to rise away from the city, Reynan looked out the dura-glass window to look at the retreating Jedi temple in the distance shrink into a speck. Although he was excited to leave, he would miss the gardens. A hailing signal suddenly rang through the cabin. Shen looked at the console again, "It's Leigh. Answer it for me, would you darling?"

"Right away, captain." Reynan said with a loose salute. He pushed the open key and Leigh's image emerged from the holo-deck.

"Gentlemen, I trust that you are on your way?"

"Just left, anything you want us to pick up while we're out? Rago milk? Sugar? Maybe a lost doctor?"

"Enough, Shen." The blue hologram said dryly, "I've sent the Doctor's coordinates to your ship's computer. Proceed there immediately. You will find her aboard the Cruiser Tempest Rain, where you will dock and retriever her. Be cordial, and please, don't annoy her." She finished with furrowed brows.

"Of course, Master. Thank you, we will be swift." Reynan chimes in before Shen could say anything else. The hologram didn't do much in the way of detail, but he could see a slight change in Master Leigh's face. Almost a softer look. "Good luck to both of you, and may the force be with you." And with that, the transmission ended.

"Just as sweet as always." Shen said as the hologram faded away.

"What do you expect, man? We're huge assholes." He chuckled.

"Yeah, we are."

The ship began to shake ever so slightly as they broke through the upper atmosphere.

"Here we go." Shen muttered. He padded a few commands into the control board and the Seraph lurched forward. Then the stars all around them turned to streams of light as they jumped into hyper space.


	3. Chapter Three

Reynan sat shivering in the copilot chair. The Seraph was fully equipped with top-of-the-line climate control systems, however Shen apparently liked it a bit, breezy. Not to mention that the stark vacuum of space tended to be quite cold on its own. It was quite evident to Reynan that the Order hadn't thought of comfort when designing the standard robes that he wore as he tried to curl his legs to his chest underneath them. Shen on the other hand had, as always, dressed for the occasion. His snow-white cloak was lined with thick, brown fur along the hood and down the front opening. He wondered what animal had to die in order for Shen to look nice. He rolled his head over and loudly complained, "Damn, man. Where are you from again? Fucking Hoth?!"

"What?" Shen mumbled as his hands slid over the screen that faced him, checking over the Seraph's flight systems.

"I'm actually freezing."

"Actually?"

"Yeah, actually."

"Well then you -actually- should have brought a coat." He replied, not looking up from the terminal. A snide smirk rose from the corners of his mouth.

"Are you a professional asshole, or just recreationally?" Reynan laughed out.

"I'm actually in training for a fallback, in case this whole 'Jedi' thing doesn't work out."

Reynan let out an overly-dramatic sigh.

"Fine, how long until we get to Taris?" he asked.

"I've hopped us into a hyperspace lane that will take us down the quickest route. With no stops for snacks, we'll get there in about twelve hours."

"Great, just in time for me to catch hyperthermia."

Shen finally turned his attention towards Reynan and calmly asked, "Well then, why don't you spend the rest of the time in your room where you can have it as nice and toasty as your heart desires?"

Reynan thought about it briefly and then rose to his feet, that was a splendid idea.

"And what are you going to do all that time without me?" he asked with a wink.

"Enjoy myself thoroughly."

"Alright," he said as he began to walk towards the back of the cockpit, "Where's the room?"

"Second door on the left. I set it up nice for ya'."

Reynan swiped his hand in front of the door, easily calling on the force to will it open, and strode through. As he walked down the hallway towards the back of the ship, he wondered where Deeks had gotten off to. These days he was always wondering away. He had probably just found a nice, dark corner of the ship to take a nap in. He closed the short distance to the room rather quickly and again willed the door to slide open. But as he began to enter, his toes crunched hard against something waist high, and made of hard metal. Reynan jumped back out of instinct and let out a quick howl of alarm. Then, from the object came a series of beeps and whirring sounds. A thoroughly excited D33-K5 droid sat, spinning his head as if he hadn't seen his master in years.

"What are you doing in there, bud?" He asked, suddenly realizing that he had raised his hands as if he were ready for a fight. As he brought them back down to his sides, he reached forward and patted the little droid on the head.

"Come on, lets take a load off."

Deeks hummed for a second and then rolled to the side to allow his master to pass by.

Reynan glanced around the room. It was quite simple in relation to the rest of the ship. Just a single bed, small private restroom, and a computer terminal. Shen was obviously not trying to impress his guests anymore than he already had. But Reynan didn't care, he would take simple over lavish any day. Not that he didn't appreciate lavish things, just that he found it easier to connect with the force and world around him when his mind had less to be distracted by. That didn't seem to faze Shen though. His friend was constantly surrounding himself with nice things. Sometimes Reynan thought that it might simply be vain attachment to material possessions, but other times he could sense a deep hole in his friend's heart that he was endlessly trying to fill. And although most of Shen's possessions, including the Seraph, were gifts from his parents, Reynan knew that he struggled with being away from what he thought was his true home. He could understand that all to well.

As he found his way over to the bed, he began to think about his own family. He did not remember much from his childhood before being taken under the guidance of the Jedi, but recently he had done quite a bit of research on his Kiffar heritage. A heritage and culture of war, hatred, and clans-manship. He had learned that his own clan, Moxla, was known especially for its viciousness in battle. A trait that he had obviously not inherited from his bloodline. Reynan had never known viciousness. Perhaps his Jedi training had taken it out of him, but somehow he felt that he wouldn't have had it anyways. He valued life too much to take it, and peace too much to disturb it (except with the occasional practical joke on Shen). Even so, the thought of being apart from his proud clan bothered him occasionally. He felt that there was a piece of himself, much like Shen, that was missing. A sense of belonging that he did not have. They had their fellow brothers and sisters of the Order to call family, but that was no substitute for true kinship. That was one of the many things, he thought, that drew Shen and himself together as close friends. They were ships drifting without anchors. Trees without roots. Jedi Knights without purpose. But this journey that they had embarked upon, he hoped, would fill them with that purpose that they so desperately craved. Finally, carving a true path to follow. Even if it would only last two standard days. It was the principle, the meaning of the mission that would solidify their place in the galaxy. Or at least thats what he figured would happen. He had been wrong before, but he badly hoped he was right.

"You're the only family I need anyways Deeks." he softly told the old droid as he dragged the bed covers over him. He would try to get some sleep, although he doubted he'd get any. He always had a rough time sleeping during space flight. Something about the artificial gravity and created atmosphere was unnatural to him. At least it was warm.

* * *

A shrieking alarm suddenly awoke Shen from his nap. As his eyes snapped open, several blinking lights over the long control terminal caught his attention. The first he noticed was the hyperdrive indicating that it was about to fall out of light speed. He glanced over at the chrono on the far end of the cockpit and sure enough, almost twelve hours had passed. 'Quick trip when you sleep through half of it.' Shen thought to himself. With all of noise, he had thought something was wrong. But it was just the over engineered safety systems giving preliminary warnings. He'd have to turn all that off next time. He rubbed his eyes roughly and reached out to type in the disengage commands. His hands flew over the controls, effortlessly punching in orders to powerdown the drive, begin diverting power to the forward shields, and engage the long range scanners. He wasn't planning on flying into any trouble, but it could never hurt to be careful. In this time of war, no matter where he flew, it had become second nature to do this. He then leaned over to the com's panel and activated the onboard intercom, and with the most aggravatingly professional voice he could muster, calmly said,

"Jedi Knight Reynan Moxla, you are needed on the bridge. Also, bring me something to drink."

He clicked the receiver off and and sat back to let the auto pilot do the rest.

Moments later, Reynan came skulking into the room looking tired. "Where's my drink?"

"Up your ass." He replied.

"Get any sleep?"

"Nah, too much on my mind."

"Ah, relax man. Nothing to be worried about."

"Not worried man, just thinking. You should try it sometime."

"Pass."

Another series of beeps came from the ship's terminal. A count down from ten illuminated on one of the screens and the hum of the ship slowly began to quiet.

"Alright here we go. Three. Two. One."

In an instant the constant stream of hyperspace halted and the stars stopped in their place. The long range sensors immediately came to life registering that multiple space craft were ahead. But they didn't need the sensors to see the ships. Floating around the small world of Taris was an entire republic assault fleet. Three assault cruisers in defensive formation were surrounded by no less than 10 corvettes, and multiple squadrons of thunderclap fighters circled the perimeter. Shen hadn't expected half the damn navy to be here.

Reynan looked up at him as yet another alarm sounded. "Their hailing us."

"You answer it, I hate talking to the military. So grouchy all the time."

He reached forward, pressed the receiver and hologram sprout from a small dot on the terminal. An old man, dressed in an officer uniform materialized and began to bark out.

"Unidentified ship, this is Republic cruiser Tempest Rain. You are entering a highly restricted area. Leave immediately, or you will be shot down."

Shen and Reynan quickly glanced at each other and then back to the holo.

"Tempest Rain. This is Jedi Knight Reynan Moxla. We are here to collect a detainee and return her to Coruscant, by order of Jedi Master Vallina. Please, do not shoot us."

Reynan swiftly replied. For a moment the officer seemed to lean out of frame of the transmission and said something they couldn't make out. Then stood up straight once more and said, "Excuse me, sir. We were not informed that you would arrive in a civilian ship. Please make your war to our dock and prepare to disembark. The General wishes to speak to you, and will be awaiting your arrival. Over and out."

The transmission ended and the hologram retreated back into the terminal. In unison both young Jedi let out a soft breath of relaxation.

"It's just like Vallina to get us blown into space dust." Shen said as he ran his hands through his shaggy hair. He grabbed ahold of the piloting controls and sent the Seraph forward rather quickly. As they neared the first few corvettes one of the Thunderclap squads peeled off from their route and flew along side them. Reynan peered out the permaglass window and waved hello to one of the fighter pilots, who nodded and then turned his head away. The Tempest Rain drew ever closer, looking just as menacing as the navy cruisers Shen had seen years ago. A testament to the military's motto: peace through superior firepower. Shen pulled back on the throttle to slow down as they entered the docking bay. A hundred or more troops milled around on the floor below, not giving the Seraph much attention as they preformed their every day duties of loading gunships, moving cargo, and organizing ordinance. He let the Seraph down softly, at the direction of the trooper waving some glowing rods around. As soon as they landed Shen hopped out of his seat and made for the door. "Come on Rey, We've been sitting around long enough."

Reynan got up to follow him, and they briskly stride down the hall. Rounding the corner, Deeks sat at the ramp, awaiting his masters. Shen mashed a control on the wall and lowered the ramp, walking down it as it descended. He turned back briefly to make sure Reynan was behind him, winked, and as he faced back forward his face dropped and he stopped in his tracks. Before him, a giant of a man in ankle length Jedi robes stood, smirking. The man put his hands on this hips, revealing heavy battle armor and gazed at the pair.

"Reynan, Shen. So nice to see you again."


End file.
